lyrichord
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Post by lyrichord on Sept 9, 2008 15:43:28 GMT -5
I do think this song is catchy, which is interesting because it doesn't have a great melody. <snip> And with each passing recording, the tone of Taylor's voice bears a stronger and stronger resemblance to that of Avril Lavigne's. I'll just WORD these two sentiments. The melody of this song is not very distinct and there are slightly too many words per line. Much like Carrie's "So Small" and Sugarland's AIWTD, it leaves me wondering who picks these lead singles because I don't think it's very good, and she's had much stronger material in the past. Mary's Song >> Love Story. And haha, I was wondering if anyone else thought Taylor totally sounds like Avril because I always think that whenever I hear her. On this song and "Change," the similarities are especially pronounced.
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freeman
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Post by freeman on Sept 9, 2008 16:09:29 GMT -5
This song should debut around #23-24...
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kw9461
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Post by kw9461 on Sept 9, 2008 16:17:17 GMT -5
I'll just WORD these two sentiments. The melody of this song is not very distinct and there are slightly too many words per line. Much like Carrie's "So Small" and Sugarland's AIWTD. I would agree with that. AIWTD is a good comparison (although this isn't nearly as bad) because I think both songs are reliant on the beat, as opposed to the lyrics and melody. I prefer songs that feature the lyrics and melody (like most country songs do), and the beat is just secondary.
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Stephen
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Post by Stephen on Sept 9, 2008 16:42:44 GMT -5
I like this song and it has grown on me considerably, but I can't get passed the dreadful allusions. The Romeo and Juliet comparison is almost inaccurate, but what bothers me most is the Scarlet Letter allusion. Still, this song should do fairly well.
Also, the implications that Taylor has had more success crossing over are completely true, she has; however, keep in mind that her songs are remixed.
This is the first one that I think will do perfectly fine un-remixed because it is a very pop-oriented song that still has country aspects to it. I like it.
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Taylor.
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Post by Taylor. on Sept 9, 2008 16:54:13 GMT -5
Carrie? Martina? Faith? Shania? Dolly? Patsy? Kitty? uhh.. hello! Most of those female vocalists sound country though. Taylor has a pure pop voice. .. have you heard her talk? She sounds more country than anyone I know.
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pipi
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Post by pipi on Sept 9, 2008 17:09:11 GMT -5
its funny Mariah Carey also has a song out with the same title that also refers to old love stories ;)
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someguy
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Post by someguy on Sept 9, 2008 18:59:30 GMT -5
This is mediocre at best, even slightly worse than her previous releases. It's the very definition of bland. I thought Romeo and Juliet were supposed to be dead heartbroken in the end? She could've at least picked a different reference. I agree. After first listen, this strikes me as being an inferior version of "Mary's Song". I'd much rather hear that on the radio than this. Plus, I completely agree about the inaccuracy of the references, especially the Hawthorne one. That will annoy me when this song becomes inescapable for the next four months. It's not horrendous by any means, but it's not great either. I agree with the comparison to "So Small" (but not "All I Want To Do" - I actually ended up really liking that one). A lead single from a sophomore album that doesn't live up to expectations. Carrie redeemed herself in my eyes by having a wonderful CD, just an odd lead single choice. Hopefully it is the same situation here.
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ClevelandRox
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Post by ClevelandRox on Sept 9, 2008 20:11:50 GMT -5
This > So Small. The lyrics to So Small are atrocious.
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Post by 43dudleyvillas on Sept 9, 2008 20:38:36 GMT -5
Since I know exactly how much the people who are likely to post in this thread can be trusted to have a civil and mature comparison conversation involving Taylor Swift and Carrie Underwood, I'm going to put a stop to this particular strand of conversation right now. If you want to debate the comparative merits of "Love Story" (or any other Taylor song) versus "So Small" (or any other Carrie song)...don't. At least not on this message board. Thanks. And don't try to get in the last word on the subject...you WILL get yourself warned and you'll be one step closer to suspension.
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Post by zaclord on Sept 9, 2008 20:46:36 GMT -5
At the first listen to the clip of "Love Story", I was kinda disappointed. Probably because I was expecting something AMAZING since they picked this as the lead single over "Fearless". But I listened to the clip again and decided to wait until I had heard the whole song before I liked it or disliked it. I heard the full version last night, and I have to say that I like it a lot. I like many of Taylor's other singles/album tracks much more, but this is a good song. The lyrics are sweet and its cool how she used Romeo and Juliet as the kind of themes for this song. Even if she doesn't tell of the story of Romeo and Juliet exactly like it happened, she gets the point that they loved each other a lot and that is expressed through the lyrics of this song. After all, what kind of song would it be if at the end the girl got run over by a truck and then the guy hangs himself over it, or something to that extent. I think Taylor executed the lyrics very well and I still think she is an amazing song writer. Now I don't know what you guys are talking about the "Scarlett Letter". Is that in Romeo & Juliet? Maybe I fell asleep during that part of the story I have only listened to this twice, so i haven't really let the lyrics sink in yet so maybe I will understand when I listen to it more. I really hope "Fearless" is the next single. That is my favorite Taylor Swift song. I hope they don't overproduce it though, I liked the acoustic version I heard.
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Post by carriefan0209 on Sept 9, 2008 21:30:04 GMT -5
A subpar first single doesn't mean a flop album - "Wind it Up" was just average but then there was "sweet escape"
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Eloqueen™
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Post by Eloqueen™ on Sept 9, 2008 21:43:19 GMT -5
Carrie? Martina? Faith? Shania? Dolly? Patsy? Kitty? uhh.. hello! Most of those female vocalists sound country though. Taylor has a pure pop voice. We must be listening to two different artists.
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Post by heartbreaklullaby on Sept 9, 2008 22:52:16 GMT -5
why are people taking the reference to Romeo and Juliet that serious?!?! Parallelism to the Shakespearean play is not necessary and what taylor's aiming for
they are just names...
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Post by zaclord on Sept 9, 2008 22:57:48 GMT -5
who names their kids Romeo and Juliet these days? but i think the characters symbolizing Romeo and Juliet are just being connected to them because of the great love they had for each other. and Taylor wanted to make sure everyone knew that the people in the song loved each other a lot, hence having the characters be R&J. its not taking the whole story of R&J into context in the song, nor is it just two random people's names in love.
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storm
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Post by storm on Sept 9, 2008 23:27:53 GMT -5
I agree, it's silly. When Dolly Parton and Billy Ray Cyrus sang "Romeo," no one deemed them as future suicidal cases.
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tigers19
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Post by tigers19 on Sept 10, 2008 0:01:21 GMT -5
I thought Romeo and Juliet were supposed to be dead heartbroken in the end? She could've at least picked a different reference. I agree. That's not the only thing about the lyrics that doesn't make sense. Taylor throws in a "You were Romeo/I was a scarlet letter," in the second verse, I believe, and that makes absolutely no sense. If "Juliet" is a "scarlet letter," either that makes her Hester Prynne, a tragic heroine branded with an "A" for adultery or it says that by being with her, Romeo/Arthur Dimmesdale will be branded by that "A" for being an adulterer himself. If either were the intended interpretation, the song would be a lot more interesting (and blasphemous) than it is, but I suspect this is actually a case of literary allusions gone awry. And the love story in The Scarlet Letter doesn't exactly end happily, either. [/end spoiler] Oh, and none of the characters named were princes or princesses, either.
Moreover, the passivity of the protagonist in this "Love Story" bothers me. It feels very un-21st century for a female's life to be so completely dependent on the decisions of the men/boys in her life. I know it's teenage fantasy but I don't have it in me to find this quaint.
The music in the song does a good job of conveying a soaring moment of triumph when Romeo comes along to propose, but since the song gives neither any indication why "Daddy" first wanted "Romeo" to stay away from Juliet nor any indication what made "Daddy" change his mind, it falls a bit flat for me.
I do think this song is catchy, which is interesting because it doesn't have a great melody. And it is entirely within Taylor's achievable vocal range. There are, as a consequence, moments in the verses where I quite like Taylor's phrasing and tone. For instance, the way she sings "I'm standing there" and "Say hello" in the first verse is quite pretty -- she does a good job singing a soft "r" on "there" and has a pleasingly light but resonant touch on those phrases. They may not last long but this is still more than I could say about "Our Song," Picture to Burn," "Should've Said No," and "Change."
Incidentally, the banjo melody sounds a whole heck of a lot like the instrumental hook of the Police's "Every Breath You Take," no? And with each passing recording, the tone of Taylor's voice bears a stronger and stronger resemblance to that of Avril Lavigne's. the song is decent, but not blowing me out of the water so we'll see... but also from above i think the lyric where she refers to herself as a scarlet letter means that romeo was not allowed to associate or interact with her, just as the people in the book were not allowed to interact with hester. basically romeo must stay away from juliet b/c it would be shameful. that's just my take.
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Post by heartbreaklullaby on Sept 10, 2008 0:21:09 GMT -5
who names their kids Romeo and Juliet these days? but i think the characters symbolizing Romeo and Juliet are just being connected to them because of the great love they had for each other. and Taylor wanted to make sure everyone knew that the people in the song loved each other a lot, hence having the characters be R&J. its not taking the whole story of R&J into context in the song, nor is it just two random people's names in love. Exactly :) (btw, David Beckham's second son is called Romeo, lol)
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jen
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Post by jen on Sept 10, 2008 9:08:35 GMT -5
I love the buildup in the song. The first verse is so gorgeous
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leilamaurizia
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Post by leilamaurizia on Sept 10, 2008 10:41:32 GMT -5
why are people taking the reference to Romeo and Juliet that serious?!?! Parallelism to the Shakespearean play is not necessary and what taylor's aiming for they are just names... Heidi Newfield's "Johnny and June" --- those are just names too. Picked out of a hat, I tell ya.
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countryqueen
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Post by countryqueen on Sept 10, 2008 10:44:09 GMT -5
Even if she doesn't tell of the story of Romeo and Juliet exactly like it happened, she gets the point that they loved each other a lot and that is expressed through the lyrics of this song. After all, what kind of song would it be if at the end the girl got run over by a truck and then the guy hangs himself over it, or something to that extent. I think Taylor executed the lyrics very well and I still think she is an amazing song writer. Now I don't know what you guys are talking about the "Scarlett Letter". Is that in Romeo & Juliet? Maybe I fell asleep during that part of the story I have only listened to this twice, so i haven't really let the lyrics sink in yet so maybe I will understand when I listen to it more. i don't really think the song is too much about Romeo & Juliet, except that their names are used. The story ends happy, thats a big indicator!! LOL but yeah i was thinking that the "scarlett letter" is not to be taken literally, i would take it as to refering to a "forbidden love", which would make perfect sense in relation to the story.
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Minimalism
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Post by Minimalism on Sept 10, 2008 11:16:00 GMT -5
I don't know, maybe it's just me, but when someone mentions Romeo & Juliet, the first thing that comes to my mind is the suicides at the end Maybe that's why the lyrics of this song bother me so much. I've listened to this several more times, and I can say that it's not growing on me and probably never will. The chorus reminds me of that god-awful coronation song David Cook picked at the idol finale, "Dream Big". Don't ask me how I remember that song.
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jenglisbe
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Post by jenglisbe on Sept 10, 2008 11:27:18 GMT -5
How is this doing at radio so far? Where do people even discuss spins/impressions increases?
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DCXfan
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Post by DCXfan on Sept 10, 2008 11:47:49 GMT -5
According to AllAccess, audience of 2.704 million and 311 spins after two days. On pace for a debut in the 23-25 range.
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Taylor.
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Post by Taylor. on Sept 10, 2008 15:21:39 GMT -5
According to AllAccess, audience of 2.704 million and 311 spins after two days. On pace for a debut in the 23-25 range. :)
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Post by picklerclarkson on Sept 10, 2008 16:28:14 GMT -5
Most of those female vocalists sound country though. Taylor has a pure pop voice. We must be listening to two different artists. Explain to me how Taylor has a country voice I sure don't hear it? :o
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sbp17
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Post by sbp17 on Sept 10, 2008 18:39:02 GMT -5
Heidi Newfield's "Johnny and June" --- those are just names too. Picked out of a hat, I tell ya. Too funny. This post came out of nowhere and cracked me up. But to me, the tragic deaths of Romeo and Juliet are not the first thing I think of. The reference to Dolly's song is a good example. I think Mindy McCready had a Romeo song as well....of course, Shakespeare couldn't write a story as tragic as Mindy's life.
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Zach
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Post by Zach on Sept 10, 2008 19:55:00 GMT -5
Okay, I don't think of suicide when I hear about Romeo and Juliet. I don't think most people do either, they think of a 'love story', thus the meaning, and title of the song. Has nobody but me ever heard somebody call some guy in love "Romeo"? It did not mean that guy was suicidal, it meant he was in love.
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Taylor.
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Post by Taylor. on Sept 10, 2008 20:15:39 GMT -5
Exactly. People always go "Whatever, Romeo!" or something when talking to someone who is madly in love. I don't think the names Romeo & Juliet are commonly associated with suicide. While the ending of the story itself is a tragedy, when most think of it, they think of the love these two characters shared and the extent they would go to be with each other.
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pipi
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Post by pipi on Sept 11, 2008 15:33:17 GMT -5
lmao@ the comments on Mindy. I didnt listen to country when she was out so the only times I've heard of her was when she is in trouble with the law (and there are ALOT of them lol)
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Post by zaclord on Sept 11, 2008 15:35:16 GMT -5
- 43 TAYLOR SWIFT Love Story 453 - 453 3.904
coming in strong at #43. i wonder how high this will debut!?
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